Young and old march to end violence gripping Philadelphia neighborhoods
CENTER CITY - With so much violence gripping the city of Philadelphia, young people are taking a stand against the violence in their neighborhoods.
On a beautiful Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia, members of its city took to the streets to send a message to the chaos makers in the city, no one is backing down.
"I’m tired of our kids dying! They’re not growing old. They need to grow old. I’m 59…they don’t make it to 29," organizer of 1 Million Kid March, Rowena Faulk, said.
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Faulk organized the march, with the hope of speaking out for the youth of the city and to provide them with a better future.
"I always think that we’re not getting to the root of the problem and the root of the problem with drug addiction, schools, notebooks, things like that," Faulk added.
Fareed Abdullah grew up in Philadelphia and is a teacher at Roxborough High School, the very same school that saw one of its football players shot and killed among four other students shot.
He says the pain in the youth he teaches is unconscionable.
"If we don’t change this, there are going to be so many more young men and women dying in the city of Philadelphia. Our children are definitely hurting. Even as an educator, a lot of children feel like they have no hope and they’re not afraid to die," Abdullah explained.
He says that lack of care, and fear, leads to the reckless shootings seen in the city.
Ernie Bristow raised four children and now fights for the future of her grandson. She says while the marches may not appear to be a solution to some, she’s convinced they are essential in order for the city to change for the better.
"If we continue to bring awareness, something will happen. That’s my thought process," Bristow said.